grims, abstain from fleshly lufts which war against the foul, 1 Pet. ii. 11. And whoever enters into the account of things, will eafily difcern this to be true; there is a deceitfulness in fin, a fenfuality in luft: who fees not that there is more attraction in the pride and oftentation of life, than in the fimplicity and plainness of it? That there is more temptation and allurement in riot and luxury, than in frugality and a competency? That the imagination of a Solomon himself cannot but be wretchedly abused, if he give it leave to wander and wanton in variety? In a word, if the mind follow a carnal or worldly appetite and fancy in all its exceffes and debauches, it will foon find it felf miferably inflaved and intoxicated; it will be wholly in the intereft of the body, and wholly given up to the pleafures of it. Secondly, Tho' the fcripture do not prohibit fome ftates or conditions of this life, which feems as it were more nearly allied to, or at leaft-wife at less distance from the lufts of the flesh, than others are; yet it forbids us to covet and purfue them. Thus St. Paul, Rom. xii. 16. Mind not high things. The apoftle does not here oblige any man to "degrade himself beneath his birth, or to fly from those advantages which God's providence and his own merits give him a juft title to; but

certainly

certainly he does oblige the Chriftian not to aspire ambitioufly to great things, nor fondly to pride himfelf in fucceffes of this kind. So when a little after he commands us in honour to prefer one another, certainly he does not teach how to talk, but how to act; not how to court and compliment, but to deport our felves confonant to those notions with which charity towards our neighbour, and humility towards our felves ought to inspire us. Thus again, we are not forbidden to be rich; no man is bound to ftrip himself of thofe poffeffions which he is born to, or to fhut out that increase which God's bleffing and his own diligence naturally bring in but we are forbid to thirst after riches, or to value our felves upon them, and commanded to be content with those things that we have; and if God blefs us with wealth, to enjoy it with modefty and thankfulness, and dispense it with liberality, 1 Tim. vi. 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. Godliness with contentment is great gain; for we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out; and having food and raiment, let us be therewith content. But they that will be rich, fall into temptation, and afnare, and into many foolish and hurtful lufts, which drown men in deftruction and perdition. For the love of money is the root of all evil, which while fome coveted after, they have er

red

red from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many forrows. ver. 17, 18, 19. Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not high-minded, nor truft in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us all things richly to enjoy. That they do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to dif tribute, willing to communicate: laying up in ftore for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life. And to multiply no more inftances of restraints of this or the like nature, thus we ought to ftand affected towards praife and reputation, interest and power, beauty, strength, &c. We must neither be too intent upon them, nor enjoy them with too much guft and fatisfaction; for this is that difpofition which appears to me to fuit beft with the fpirit and defign of the gofpel, and with the nature of fuch things as being of a middle fort, are equally capable of being either temptations or bleffings, inftruments of good or

evil.

3dly, The fcripture regulates and bounds our natural and neceffary appetites, not fo much by nicely defining the exact degrees and measures within which nature must be ftrictly contained, as by exalted examples of, and exhortations to a spiritual, pure, and heavenly difpofition. Thus our Lord and Master seems to me to give fome

check

check to the ftream of natural affection, and to call off his difciples from it, to the confideration of a spiritual relation; Mark iii. 34, 35. And he looked round about on them which fat about him, and faid, behold my mother and my brethren: for whosoever shall do the will of God, the fame is my brother, and my fifter, and mother. To which words of our Lord I may join thofe of St. Paul, Henceforth know we no man after the flesh--yet now henceforth know we him no more, 2 Cor. v. 16. The answer of our Lord to a difciple who would have deferred his following him, till he had buried his father, Matth. viii. 21. and to him who begged leave to go and bid farewel firft to his relations and domefticks, Luke ix. 61. does plainly countenance the doctrine I here advance; and fo does St. Paul, 1 Cor. vii. 29. fo often cited by me. Not that our Saviour or his apoftles did ever account our natural affections vicious and impure; for 'tis a vice to be without them, Rom. i. 31. Not that they went about to diminish or abate, much lefs to cancel the duties flowing from them: no; they only prune the luxuriancy of untaught nature, and correct the fondnefes and infirmities of animal inclinations. Our natural affections may entangle and enflave us, as well as unlawful and irregular ones, if we lay no restraint upon them. Religion indeed makes them

U

the

the feeds of virtue, but without it they eafily betray us into fin and folly. For this reafon I doubt not, left under pretence of fatisfying our most natural and importunate appetites, we fhould be enfnared into the love of this world, and entangled in the cares of it, our Saviour forbids us to take thought for to-morrow, even for the neceffaries of to-morrow, what we shall eat, and what we shall drink, and wherewithal we fhall be cloathed, Matth. vi. These are the restraints laid upon the body in fcripture; which if any man obferve, he will foon difcern himself as far purified and freed from original corruption, as human nature in this life is capable of. And that he may;

§. 2dly, He muft fortify and invigorate the mind. And this must be done two ways. First, By poffeffing it with the knowledge of the gofpel, and the grace of the Spirit. Secondly, By withdrawing it often from the body. As to the former branch of this rule, the neceffity of it is apparent fince the ftate of nature is fuch as has before been defcribed, we ftand in need not only of revelation to enlighten us, but alfo of grace to ftrengthen us; of the former to excite us to exert all the force and power we have; of the latter to enable us to do that which our natural force never can effect. It cannot be here expected that

I fhould